Lawsuit dismissal proposed
An attorney for Justine Winter has moved to dismiss a lawsuit that blamed a Columbia Falls woman for a 2009 fatal crash that led to two homicide convictions for the Evergreen girl.
Maxwell Battle filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit Friday in Flathead County District Court.
Judge Katherine Curtis has not yet signed off on the dismissal, according to District Court officials.
Winter, 17, was convicted Thursday of two counts of deliberate homicide Thursday after a nine-day trial.
She could be sentenced to a prison term of 10 to 100 years in prison for each of the counts. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 30.
Winter was convicted after a jury agreed with prosecutors who alleged she intentionally crossed the center of U.S. 93 north of Kalispell on March 19, 2009, and collided head-on with a northbound vehicle driven by 35-year-old Erin Thompson.
Thompson, who was pregnant, died along with her 13-year-old son Caden Vincent Odell.
Battle, on behalf of Winter, filed the lawsuit in July 2010 against Thompson’s estate and the construction companies that built the U.S. 93 overpass at Church Drive where the accident occurred.
The lawsuit alleged that Thompson negligently operated her vehicle in a manner that caused it to collide with Winter’s vehicle.
Battle and fellow defense attorney David Stufft made the same argument during Winter’s criminal trial, basing the theory on the opinion of a crash reconstruction expert they retained to testify.
Prosecutors argued that Winter deliberately drove her car into oncoming traffic in a suicide attempt.
The lawsuit noted that Winter suffered permanent injuries, mental pain and suffering and the loss of capacity to enjoy life. It asked for unspecified damages to be paid to Winter.
The litigation also alleged that Knife River Construction, Western Traffic Control and Mountain West Holding Co. negligently failed to adequately construct and maintain traffic-control devices and signals, including lighting, lane delineators and reflective markings.
Battle and Stufft have not responded to requests to comment.